MCI writes to state on marks goof

KOLKATA: The career of about 1,000 medical students is in jeopardy following the allegation that the government has increased marks of several students to ensure their admission to various medical colleges of the state.
The Medical Council of India has written to the state government and promised to take action if the discrepancy is proved.
A complaint lodged with the highest regulating body on November 17, 2014, states that the the West Bengal health and family welfare department and the West Bengal Joint Entrance Examination (WBJEE) Board have allegedly increased the marks of the candidates as the number of students qualified for admission to medical and dental colleges fell far short of the 2,850 seats.
“We have taken cognizance of the matter and have written a letter to the state government. We will take strong action if this is proved and if anybody is found guilty,” said Medical Council of India president Jayshreeben Mehta.
This year, the WBJEE board uploaded the answer key for stipulated question papers of WBJEE 2014 and also the optical mark recognition(OMR) and response sheets of all the examinees in the website. So, all the examinees had got the access to their own OMR and response sheets for the said examination and what marks he or she secured in the particular subject.
The reports submitted to MCI by colleges showed that some students secured 151 marks, while they actually got only 115. The pass mark for general category students is 122 (50 per cent of the total 243 marks), mentioned the complaint.
Citing example of students getting admitted to Calcutta Medical College, it has been said that five candidates have been given 93.66 in biology, which is absurd. The complainant alleged that as many 600 students in MMBS course and another 308 students admitted in dental course have failed and they have been given an additional number of 36 to facilitate their entry.
Director of medical education Sushanta Banerjee, however, strongly denied the allegation.
Speaking to TOI, Banerjee said, “People are unnecessarily making this an issue. If the MCI seeks a clarification, we will provide all the details. Everything was done online and there was no way we can fudge or increase the marks, ”
Chairman of WBJEE board Bhaskar Gupta denied receiving any letter from the MCI and said, “If the MCI seeks any information, we will definitely provide. There is nothing to hide”.
“We have received the numbers from the health department. There might be one or two typing errors, but that can be rectified. We have nothing else to do. If the MCI seeks the number details, we will send it again,” said principal of Calcutta Medical College Tapan Lahiri.
“The complaint has some details which is really striking and we want to know the actual facts and the state government will have to provide us the details,” said an MCI official.
Minister of state for health Chandrima Bhattacharya was not available for comment.